The Blue and the Gold
by KoopaSensei
Summary: Near the end of his life, the Ninth Doctor and his companions stop for a spell at a Raanian cafe, only to run into the timestream's greatest hero: Booster Gold!


In the short time Rose Tyler had known the Time Lord known as the Doctor, he had shocked her with alien worlds, her own planet's fate, and feats of cunning and skill that defied explanation. Despite all of that, the single event that surprised her the most was when he'd taken her and their new friend Captain Jack Harkness to Raan. "A cafe?" she asked, bemused by the normalcy of their location.

Sure, it was an alien cafe, the walls made of some gleaming white metal, the waitress and everyone else in the restaurant possessing skin too pale and ears too sharp to be quite human, the served drinks glowing a phosphorescent blue and tasting like liquid marshmallow, but it was still a cafe. The Doctor was putting up a pleasantly benign expression, but she thought it might actually be partially genuine this time. "Yes, fantastic, isn't it? Raan's actually the closest planet with sapient life outside your solar system, all the way out in the Alpha Centauri system. Best coffee in the universe!" The Time Lord took another sip from the metal cup and beamed at them both.

All three of them were getting stares from the locals, but Jack was getting the most. Somehow managing to drink the brew in a way that highlighted his handsome face and gorgeous hair, the looks he was getting were less 'what's this alien doing here' and more 'I'll have that, please'. It wasn't as if the rogue hadn't noticed the attention, matching The Doctor's smile with a self-indulgent grin of his own. "I prefer the stuff back home, but I can't complain about the scenery."

Rose was enjoying herself well enough, though after everything she'd done so far, something as pedestrian as this was a little banal. Then she caught a glimpse of something through the wide, horizontal window on a nearby wall: another human! Or, at least, he looked like a human, though from what Rose had seen of the universe at large that didn't necessarily mean much. He was tall, with a muscular build not unlike Jack's, though what this man was wearing highlighted it more. Aside from his wavy blond hair and rugged face, his entire body was covered in a skintight suit that alternated from black to gold, with a black star in the center of his chest and a pair of yellow goggles over his eyes.

Unable to help herself, Rose giggled a little at how silly the man was dressed, but the sound seemed to catch his attention and they locked eyes. Before she knew what was happening the man finished talking to the Raanian near him and entered the building, a floating robot following him over one shoulder. The Doctor didn't miss the newcomer's entrance, and his smile disappeared as his lips turned into a frown. "Well, well, well, look who it is...Michael Carter."

Mr. Carter gave The Doctor a flashy smile that seemed entirely fake to Rose, and loudly said, "Doctor, I know we're friends, but please, call me **Booster Gold**." He pulled up a seat to their hovering table and sat down across from The Doctor. "It's been a while Doc, how've you been?"

"Quite fine, thanks for asking!" The Doctor replied in a clearly false cheery tone, smiling back at Booster just as intently. "I mean, sure, the time stream's a lot less cluttered lately, so of course I'd run into you. Thanks for all that help, by the way."

The forced smile fell away, replaced with a look of sympathy and trepidation. "I'm...I'm sorry, Doctor. I know I could've helped in the Time War, but I was busy at the time. There was this guy named Supernova and…" his voice trailed off, catching the hint the Doctor's glare was giving to him.

If Jack noticed the animosity between the two, he didn't show it. Giving both the oddly-dressed man and his robot a once over, Jack asked, "It's always good meeting old friends of The Doctor. My name's Jack Harkness." He looked more intently at the robot, then added, "Who're you, hot stuff?"

When the floating robot replied, Rose could've sworn the thing sounded flattered. "My name is Skeets, and this is **Booster Gold** , time's greatest champion!" Both Rose and Jack looked at the spandex wearing man in disbelief, and for his part Booster looked mortified. "A champion football player in his youth in the 25th Century, Booster left the sport behind and traveled back to the 20th Century with a time machine and decked out in the finest technology! Booster Gold: Protecting his past, to ensure your future!"

"More accurately," The Doctor cut in, his tone acidic, "he's the timestream's most laughable con-man. He didn't quit sports, he was kicked out for throwing a game, and he uses his 'hero' career for the fame and fortune." Looking him dead in the eyes, The Doctor told Booster, "Michael Carter has never helped a single person out of the goodness of his heart. Unless you're able to give him money or promotion, you might as well not even exist." The Doctor rifled through a jacket pocket, pulled out a handful of odd coins, slammed them onto the table and stood up. "Let's go back to the TARDIS. I think the cafe's become a little too crowded."

Jack quickly got up and followed The Doctor out, and after a moment so did Rose. As they all left the building, heading for the blue box parked nearby, Rose caught a glimpse of the hero's face. The man looked...tired. He wasn't shocked by what The Doctor had said, but it clearly hurt him nonetheless. That was the last time Rose Tyler saw Booster Gold, or at least the one from that universe.

Once the TARDIS had taken off with its signature departure sound, Booster waited a few seconds before picking up one of the coins from the table and placing in into a hidden pocket on his suit, replacing it quickly with an American quarter. The glowing light on Skeet's face turned red, and from it a different voice came out. "Well, Booster, did you get the coin?"

With a sigh full of resignation, Booster left the cafe himself and walked back to his Time Sphere. "Yeah," he muttered, his voice low. "I got the Thanagarian gold piece. No danger of the germs on it infecting and decimating the population of Raan now."

There was a short pause as Booster entered the sphere along with Skeets before the voice responded. "What about The Doctor? Did he seem to suspect anything?"

"No," Booster Gold said, operating the machine's controls to send him back to the Vanishing Point. "It was pretty clear that to him, I'm still the money-grubbing, skirt-chasing, fame-addled Booster he was expecting." In words empty of any real joy, Booster said, "Mission accomplished, Rip," and he, with the Time Sphere and Skeets, disappeared between one second and the next.


End file.
